'40 million crypto accounts in Pakistan despite just 6m active taxpayers'

Pakistan has become the world’s third-largest cryptocurrency market with around 40 million Pakistanis holding crypto accounts, Chairman of the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA) Bilal Bin Saqib informed a National Assembly committee on Monday.

Briefing the NA Standing Committee on Cabinet Secretariat, he said that the concept of money is changing globally as governments in Dubai, Thailand and Singapore are also moving towards alternative currencies. Hong Kong, he added, have issued bonds based on blockchain technology.

Bilal said that Pakistan had established a regulatory regime for virtual assets, adding that the authority was set up to bring digital currency users into the tax net. “Banning technology means restricting ourselves,” he opined, adding that young Pakistanis want to achieve economic independence and have developed an understanding of digital currencies.

He said the regulatory authority would take strict action against illegal digital companies after September 5. Binance and HTS have applied to PVARA for no-objection certificates (NOCs), he added.

Saqib said permanent staff are now being recruited at PVARA and that the authority has spent only 8% of the budget allocated to it by the government. He said Pakistan wants to become a global leader in Islamic finance through digital assets and would also seek to bring remittances into the digital ecosystem.

The committee sought another briefing from the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority.